Drones were a big thing at the recent CES 2015 in Las Vegas. For an example of the range of new drones, or UAS (unmanned aerial systems), launched at CES you can take a peek at CNet's gallery from the event. However not everyone likes the idea of these drones hovering around willy-nilly. Some might want to thwart drones illegally invading their privacy, for instance, and perhaps the Rapere Intercept Drone is the answer to their drone woes.
At the time of writing there are no live videos of the Rapere in action, only some basic diagrams and a FAQ. However the team behind the project say that they have worked in the UAS industry for years and are working in collaboration with computer vision experts to finesse the drone targeting system. They are targeting the professional market and the Rapere will be priced accordingly, the developers don't want this device to be employed to disrupt legitimate drone use.
The Rapere Intercept Drone has been designed quite differently to the drones that it might seek to remove from the sky. It is definitely built for speed. Since it is made to simply take off, intercept and take down it is designed to use up its batteries (for speed and targeting computation) in a short time; perhaps needing only a 2 minute flight to complete its task rather than the drones it targets which have a 15 to 20 minute air time.
It finds and closes in on the target drone thanks to software that uses its in-built 12 camera 90fps vision system. Then it hovers a little above the target drone and drops an entanglement rope upon it. Your Rapere should then return and land for you to equip it with a new tangle line.
Of course there are questions about the device's real-world capabilities, the legality of its use and when/if it will ever make it to market availability. If it doesn't make it to being a finished product I'd still like to see some actual videos demonstrating this anti-drone drone in action in the meantime. A range of alternative, more visually exciting, drone-killing mechanisms would also be appreciated.
Via CNet.
